SportzWire
2026 News
LACKAWANNA COUNTY WEEK 5 CROSS COUNTRY CLUSTER MEETS

LACKAWANNA COUNTY WEEK 5 CROSS COUNTRY CLUSTER MEETS

By: Kevin Borrelli | SportzWire | October 10, 2026 | Photo courtesy Kevin Borrelli

Lakeland, Western Wayne and Lackawanna Trail vs. Susquehanna, Mountain View and Forest City At Lakeland

The boys' race was very spread out at the finish line, with Lakeland's Henry Decker defending his home course in 16:38. Nearly 20 seconds back was Evan Beamer of Susquehanna in 16:56, and almost 40 seconds behind him was Lackawanna Trail's Chase Litwin in 17:31.

The team race, however, was very exciting. Early on it looked like it was Lakeland's to lose, as they took the top two spots against Mountain View. But Mountain View answered by taking 3rd through 6th and edged Lakeland out, 26 to 29.

In the girls' race, Western Wayne's Kaitlyn Kloss logged another cluster meet win, nearly dipping under the 20-minute barrier with a time of 20:00 flat. About 40 seconds back was the duo from Susquehanna, with Kiera Burke taking second in 20:39, followed closely by Josey Kelly in 20:41.

Lakeland and Trail both ran well as a team, finishing one point apart and earning three forfeited wins against the other cluster.

Blue Ridge, Elk Lake, Montrose vs. Mid Valley, West Scranton, and Scranton At Blue Ridge

On paper, the boys' race was set to potentially determine the Lackawanna Runner of the Year, between unbeaten Parker Upright of Elk Lake and Mid Valley's Jacob Borrelli. Add in the one-loss Seamus Wallace of West Scranton, and you had a race with a ton of regional all-star implications. However, all of that was cut short by an injury Parker has been dealing with since early this season; he and the team played it safe, sitting him out in hopes of having him ready for districts and states. With Parker out, Jacob and Seamus separated themselves early, finished 1-2, ran on each other's shoulders the entire race, and finished in a dead heat, both timed in 16:43, over 30 seconds ahead of the next runner. Third place was a battle early on between Paxton Pangraelli on his home course, Jamison Myers of Montrose, Trevor Upright of Elk Lake, and Mid Valley's Chris Von Ahnen. Chris was the first to fall off the chase pack as Paxton pushed the pace early. Paxton continued to lead, but Jamison and Trevor weren't far back, and once they hit the bottom of the hill the second time through, Trevor made his move to pass Paxton and take third in 17:19. Paxton set a school record in 17:23, and Jamison was only three seconds back in fifth.

The team battle was safely secured by the pack of Mid Valley runners, who took places 1-6-7-8-9 overall. With districts less than a month away, the Spartans are looking like the team to beat in the AA boys' race as they attempt a three-peat.

The girls' race saw a bit of an upset, as Meg Bartlebaugh, an up-and-coming runner from Scranton, got her first win of the season over powerhouse Kendyl Weisgold of Elk Lake. Kendyl took the race out hard early and built a commanding lead over Meg. However, Meg chipped away at it over the next two miles and got the win in 20:42. Kendyl hung on for second in 21:11, and her teammate Madison Kerr took third, not far back in 21:19.

On the team side, Elk Lake easily took care of business, putting five runners in the top 11 of the meet. The Warriors are looking like one of the stronger Single A teams in the district.

Abington Heights, Valley View, North Pocono vs. Riverside, Old Forge, Dunmore At McDade Park

The boys' race was another 1-2 finish for Riverside, as Jack Davies and Marco Nardone finished a second apart in 16:56 and 16:57. Breaking up the Riverside sweep was Abington's top runner, Joseph Grad, who held on for third in 17:26, just a few seconds ahead of Riverside's third runner.

Both Riverside and Abington came into this race undefeated on the season. Riverside is looking like a heavy favorite for the District 2 Single A title, and Abington for the AAA title. Riverside was without one of its top three runners, leaving an opening for Abington to perhaps steal a victory. However, Riverside's 1-2 finish was too much to overcome, and Riverside took it by seven points.

In the girls' race, Sadie Loftus of Valley View continued her strong season with another victory, in the fastest time the new McDade Park course has seen this year: 19:31. The Gilboy girls of Abington took second and third, with Marley going 19:47 and Calli 20:20.

Abington remains undefeated on the season, putting five runners in the top nine of the race. Old Forge was the next closest team to them, and they lost 17 to 43, keep in mind that 15 is a perfect score.

Delaware Valley, Honesdale, Wallenpaupack vs. Scranton Prep, Holy Cross, and Carbondale At Delaware Valley

Scranton Prep's Nick Michel logged his second win of the season, going 17:04 on the lightning-fast Delaware Valley course. Nick held off a host of Wallenpaupack runners, as the next four across the line were all Buckhorns, led by AJ Freeman in 17:16, Dan Salinas in 17:22, and Chase Predmore in fourth with a 17:31.

The Wallenpaupack boys left no doubt they were the team to beat, putting their top five runners in the top nine of the race, all under 18:40 on the day. The Buckhorns are coming together at the right time and will look to challenge for the District 2 AA boys' team title.

The girls' race was one of the best of the season, as Prep's Freshman Phenom, Vella Byrne, took on one of the area's top runners, Grace Holderith of Delaware Valley. Grace used her knowledge of the home course to her advantage early and had her foot on the gas through the first two miles, coming through in under 12 minutes, but it wasn't enough to shake Vella. With about a mile to go, Grace lost a step or two going down a hill, Vella opened up a gap and didn't hold back, taking the win in 18:05. Grace finished second in 18:21, and third, also under 19 minutes, was June Brown of Wallenpaupack in 18:55. I have to include Prep's second runner Ailena Conner here as well, with a solid 19:07, good enough for fourth place.

On the team side, all eyes were on Prep and Wallenpaupack: of the top 15 runners, 13 were from one of those two schools. The two AA powerhouses traded blows throughout the race, but Scranton Prep was on the better side of most of them and took the win, 26 to 29 over Paupack.

Looking Ahead to Week 6

The season is winding down as we head into Week 6.

At Mid Valley, Susquehanna's Beamer and Benson will look to earn some all-star points against the Mid Valley pack, and Scranton's Meg Bartlebaugh will get a race from Susquehanna's Kiera Burke.

At McDade Park, Scranton Prep's Nick Michel will be pushed to the limit by the trio of Blue Ridge's Paxton Pangraelli, Elk Lake's Trevor Upright, and Montrose's Jamison Myers. Hopefully we'll see Parker back on a starting line soon. The Scranton Prep girls are running hot right now, but winning back-to-back big meets isn't easy, and Elk Lake should offer them another challenge. Kendyl Weisgold will need to break up Prep's 1-2 in order to give Elk Lake a chance.

At Valley View, the Abington boys will look to bounce back against the Mountain View and Lakeland teams. The race between Western Wayne's Kaitlyn Kloss and Valley View's Sadie Loftus and Abington's Marley Gilboy should be a good one.

At Dunmore, the Riverside boys will try to stay undefeated against Wallenpaupack, a team that seems to be putting things together at the right time. The girls of Old Forge and Dunmore will have a chance to earn some all-star points against a solid cluster.

TOP RUNNER STATS BY TEAM

ABINGTON HEIGHTS Joseph Grad: 17:26 Marley Gilboy: 19:47 Calli Gilboy: 20:20

BLUE RIDGE Paxton Pangraelli: 17:23

DELAWARE VALLEY Grace Holderith: 18:21

ELK LAKE Trevor Upright: 17:19 Kendyl Weisgold: 21:11 Madison Kerr: 21:19

LACKAWANNA TRAIL Chase Litwin: 17:31

LAKELAND Henry Decker: 16:38

MID VALLEY Jacob Borrelli: 16:43

MONTROSE Jamison Myers: 17:26

RIVERSIDE Jack Davies: 16:56 Marco Nardone: 16:57

SCRANTON Meg Bartlebaugh: 20:42

SCRANTON PREP Nick Michel: 17:04 Vella Byrne: 18:05 Ailena Conner: 19:07